Make your own Wiki
In an increasingly noisy world, the people who stand out are those who communicate with clarity and bring memorable stories to the table. Building your own personal “Wiki” is one of the most powerful ways to cultivate depth, influence, and presence. A personal Wiki is not a vanity project, it is a living archive of who you are, what you know, and how you can contribute.
Below are the core components.
A. Story Bank: The Narrative That Makes You, You
Your stories are your intellectual and emotional fingerprint.
They are what make you uniquely you. The small incidents, unexpected encounters, and pivotal moments you jot down, often without thinking, become powerful tools later in life.
A well-curated Story Bank helps you:
Break the ice in new social settings
Make lessons unforgettable when you teach
Infuse authenticity into conversations
Illustrate abstract ideas with real-world experiences
Build rapport quickly and naturally
When shared at the right time, even a small anecdote can open doors, lower defences, and build trust. People remember stories far more clearly than data.
B. People List: Your Personal Network Intelligence
(i) Be Resourceful and Know Your People
Document what you know about the people in your life, their work, skills, ambitions, strengths, and quirks. The world functions through people quietly pulling strings for one another.
When you make mutually beneficial introductions, you don’t just help two people, you earn two favours, goodwill, and tremendous respect. It is the cleanest form of social capital.
This is not transactional; it is transformational.
You become the person who makes things happen.
(ii) The List of Inspirers
Maintain a list of people who inspire you, even if they are imperfect. No hero is flawless, but every hero has something extraordinary worth learning from.
Maybe someone lectures beautifully.
Maybe someone negotiates like an artist.
Maybe someone carries themselves with unstoppable calm.
When you dissect what makes them remarkable, you upgrade your own operating system.
(iii) David Rockefeller’s Rolodex
David Rockefeller famously kept a Rolodex with over 100,000 people, not as a symbol of power, but as a source of understanding. He knew who people were, what they cared about, and how he could create value for them.
Your People List is your modern-day Rolodex, dynamic, digital, and exponentially more powerful.
General Insight: Why Your Wiki Matters
Powerful references, combined with unique stories, make you someone worth listening to.
Being heard is a beautiful feeling, not because of ego, but because understanding enables cooperation. A personal Wiki makes it easy for others to take you seriously. It gives your ideas context, colour, and gravity.
And here is a fundamental truth:
When you sell something the right way, you rarely need force.
You can align incentives so that everyone genuinely wins.
The world is not a zero-sum game.
Crafting win-wins is one of life’s purest joys.
Communication is not merely about transmitting information—it is about shaping perception, earning trust, and inspiring action.
Examples of Strong References
“Winning is a function of access and information.” — Raymond Reddington, The BlackList
“We don’t sell saddles here.” — Stewart Butterfield, Slack
These references are powerful because they compress entire philosophies into a sentence. When paired with your stories and insights, they elevate any conversation.
Closing Thought
How you say what you say is profoundly underrated.
Tone, timing, narrative, and clarity can change the trajectory of opportunities.
Your personal Wiki, your stories, your people, your references, is your foundation for influence. Build it deliberately, and you’ll find that the world listens more closely, responds more generously, and collaborates more willingly.
